The Council of
Ministers

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd Ibn
Abdul Aziz Al-Saud

The Council of Ministers was established by
King Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Saud in 1953. It consists of the King
who is the Prime Minister, the Crown Prince who is Deputy Prime Minister,
the Second Deputy Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers. Under the bylaws
announced by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd Ibn Abdul
Aziz Al-Saud in September 1993, the Council is responsible for drafting
and overseeing the implementation of the internal, external, financial,
economic, educational and defense policies, and general affairs of the
state. The Council meets weekly and is presided over by the King or one of
his deputies. On August 2, 1995, King Fahd issued a Royal Decree
dissolving the Council of Ministers and announcing the names of Ministers
in the new Cabinet under his chairmanship.

On June 16, 1999, royal decrees made
changes in the cabinet, and created a 22nd ministry, the Ministry of Civil
Service.

Prince Abdullah has been Crown Prince and
First Deputy Prime Minister since June 1982. He was born in Riyadh in 1924
and received formal education from religious scholars and intellectuals.
Prince Abdullah has commanded the Saudi National Guard since 1963.

Prince Sultan has been Second Deputy
Prime Minister since June 1982 and Minister of Defense and Aviation since
1962. He was born in Riyadh in 1928 and was educated at the Royal Court.
His first post was Governor of Riyadh. In 1953, he became Minister of
Agriculture, and in 1955 he assumed responsibility for the Ministry of
Communications and oversaw the establishment of Saudi Arabia's first
railway system.

Born: 1931 Education: Studied religion, economics and politics. Positions Held: Governor of Makkah; Minister of Municipal and Rural
Affairs; Deputy Minister of Defense and Aviation; Minister of Housing and
Public Works since 1975.

Born:Education: Ph.D., Physics, Harvard University, 1974. Positions Held: Professor, Physics Department, King Fahd
University of Petroleum and Minerals, Chairman, Physics Department;
Vice-President, King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology; Director,
Department of Energy Resources, Research Institute, King Fahd University
of Petroleum and Minerals; Minister of Industry and Electricity since
1995.

Born: 1949 Education: BA in Economics and Political Science, King Saud
University, Riyadh; MA in Economics, Denver University, Colorado, USA;
Ph.D. in Economics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado,
USA. Positions Held: Lecturer in principles of economics 1971-1982, then
associate professor of economics and head of the Department of
Administrative Sciences 1982-1986 at King Abdul Aziz Military College in
Riyadh; guest lecturer 1982-1983 at the College of Command and Staff;
part-time advisor to the Saudi Development Fund 1982-1986; alternate Saudi
executive director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) 1986-1989;
Saudi executive director on the executive board of the World Bank Group
1989-1995; vice-governor of the Saudi Monetary Agency June to October
1995; Minister of State and Member of the Council of Ministers October
1995 to January 1996; Minister of Finance and National Economy since
January 1996.